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Past Memories 1.5 now available, free for a week!

Past Memories 1.5 now available, free for a week!

Give Me Five has released the latest update for Past Memories on all platforms recently. This new update fixes some minor bugs and adds a new level to the game’s story and a new item. This version is now available on all platforms. We also want to announce something. As...

Past Memories 1.2 – Trick or Treat?

Past Memories 1.1 – What have we changed?

Past Memories 1.1 – What have we changed?

Last thursday, we launched the 1.1 update for Past Memories, with more than 30 changes and optimizations. Since the launch, we never hid that we wanted feedback and now we thank everyone who told us their opinions. Without exception, literally everything has been considered and extensively tested. In this post,...

Give Me Five is three years old!

Give Me Five is three years old!

Today, September 30th, Give Me Five is three years old! We started one way and today we are very happy with the choices we made. Past Memories exceeded our expectations and we are honoured by the praise we have received, but also knowing that it is only a beginning of a...

Give Me Five is a Brazilian company created in 2010 and responsible for great successes like "Dilma Adventure" and "Jogo Justo on the Taxes Island".

We praise simplicity with efficiency and quality, gathering humour and the creativity of our developers! We like to have fun at work and learn from our mistakes, using collaborative competition. We are here to listen the players, and deliver big experiences!

Felipe Dantas
Art Director
Felipe was always enchanted by video games' magical worlds. When he was a child, he was amazed by the ability to create an entire universe and leave it in the hands of several people. He grew up working with Web programming until he studied Video Games Development at his university, where he found his vocation as a Digital Artist to bring life the worlds that he dreamed about. Today he is the professional responsible for art at Give Me Five Entertainment Group, as well as all the company‘s good jokes.

Raphael Nunes
Programming Director
Raphael was in love with the video game industry from an early age. Even before going to high school, he knew it would be his profession in the future. But how? How could that device give life to a world? That he did not know, but understood that he would have to study a lot and of course, the answer to these questions were on computers. After years of studying, he went to university in 2009 for the Degree in Video Games Development, where he was amazed with the power of giving life to the world that he has always dreamed of creating. Today, he is Give Me Five‘s crazy programmer.

Roberto Guedes
Creative Director
Roberto has always been interested in computer science, even when he was little. In 2007, he decided to venture more into the gaming industry. He didn‘t know what he was getting into. He was blogger for a while, and visited important video game studios. At his university, he met the Give Me Five team, where he is Creative Director, Producer, General Director and tries to be funny when he shouldn‘t.

Gabriel Cavalcanti
3D Artist
Gabriel studied Video Games Development and graduated in 2011. Of all his skills, the two that stand out the most are Visual Arts and 3D Art. Being a part of Give Me Five's art team since January of 2014, he is responsible for tasks like quick sketches and elaborated videos and models. A true art machine!

Gustavo Guterres
Programmer
Gustavo's first experience in the games world was with Super Mario Bros 3 in NES, and it was love at first sight. After discovering the world of Pokémon Yellow, on the Game Boy Color, he was impressed, wondering how they made an amazing game in such a small cartridge. He graduated in Computer Science in 2013, willing to be a programmer, and soon realized that it wasn't that mysterious anymore. He loves to give ideas, suggestions and make jokes. He joined Give Me Five's programming team in September of 2014.

Barbara Prado
Marketing Lead
Graduated in Marketing and Administrations and also a board games player and collector, Barbara has been making her recent years of her professional career a big tour of knowledge in the gaming market, venturing into small and big companies of different strands and areas.
Very analytical, she likes to observe the evolution of behaviour and communication between players of our current society, always looking to improve their experience, be it in-game, on forums or communities.
She joined Give Me Five as Marketing Lead in January of 2015.
“Player support is as important as the game's quality, a good community team can not only motivate them, but also give them a complete and immersive experience in the gaming world.”

Mariana Lopes
2D Artist
Mariana always liked to draw, ever since she was a child. Self-taught, she learnt to make sketches by observing, having patience, and a lot of fun. She understood early in her life that it was something very important to her.
An avid player, she had fun with old-school classics like The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario Bros. and others, but she wasn't thinking about developing games on her own. Her world expanded when she had the opportunity to work on games, seeing an extension of her own art.
After entering the industry, she didn't want to stop anymore,focusing on artistic concepts, texturing and 2D art in general. She taught in a Drawing and Character Creation course and now studies Library Science. She joined Give Me Five's art team in January of 2014.

Yuri Guzon
Programmer
Yuri has been passionate about games since his childhood. He had his first contact with them through Alex Kidd on the Master System, and a few years later acquired his first console: a Nintendo 64. It wasn't long until he came to know what would be his favourite game, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Marvelled with the game's capacity to offer true interactive experiences, he chose to devote himself to the developer career. Bachelor in Computer Science and formed in the Technical Course of Game Development, he hopes to actively contribute to the industry that left an impression on his life. He joined Give Me Five's programming team in February of 2014.

Roberto GuedesGeneral Director
Roberto has always been interested in computer science, even when he was little. In 2007, he decided to venture more in the gaming industry. He didn‘t know what he was getting into. He was blogger for a while, and visited important studios of games companies. In college, met the Give Me Five team, where he is Creative Director, Producer, General Director and tries to be funny when he should‘t.

In Search of Success

Part of a series of educational games developed for Sebrae, the Brazilian’s Government initiative to support new enterprises, seeking a dynamism in the form of teaching entrepreneurial practices. In this game, you answer questions using a set of icons! Sign up for the Sebrae Distance Education and play the various games clicking here!

Gaining Customers

Part of a series of educational games developed for Sebrae, the Brazilian’s Government initiative to support new enterprises, seeking a dynamism in the form of teaching entrepreneurial practices. In this, you control an entrepreneur looking for ways to improve his marketing and prevent competitors! Sign up for the Sebrae Distance Education and play the various games clicking here!

Conquer Your Space

Part of a series of educational games developed for Sebrae, the Brazilian’s Government initiative to support new enterprises, seeking a dynamism in the form of teaching entrepreneurial practices. In this game, you must rescue lost ships in space, and each one will reward you with a valuable tip! Sign up for the Sebrae Distance Education and play the various games clicking here!

Entrepreneur’s Track

Part of a series of educational games developed for Sebrae, the Brazilian’s Government initiative to support new enterprises, seeking a dynamism in the form of teaching entrepreneurial practices. In this game, you track a board with several challenges you may encounter in real life! Sign up for the Sebrae Distance Education and play the various games clicking here!

Past Memories

Our first release to iOS and Android. Face your fears and even death in this fun and challenging Runner.Click here to play it now!

Jogo Justo on the Taxes Island

Give me Five‘s support for the campaign Jogo Justo aways been clear. The best way to help is to fight for the taxes relief in Brazil! Do your part!Click here to play it now!

Dilma Adventure

Game made for the brazilian electoral campaign in 2010, and in less than two weeks has been played more then one million times! A true brazilian classic that never goes boring.Click here to play it now!

I know. The main question here is: what does that Google Maps’s image above have to do with Level Design? I’ll admit, absolutely nothing. With the exception of when you make a game based on a real city and open world. But it is also an excellent way to avoid confusion by using an image of any other game.

So, this month’s Give Me Lessons is for level designers, or the ones aspiring the role and for those who have not the faintest idea what it is. But the term is clear. This is the person (or team of developers) aimed at creating levels in a game, actively participating in the discussions on mechanics, types of enemies and also working with the art team.

But the level designers are also some of the first to work effectively after the period of defining the game’s genre and how the gameplay will work. After all, you can not make a good level for strategy games when your project functions as a platformer, right? So, when that part is discussed, pen and paper are used to start drawing a level and also going directly to your engine, using placeholder art. As we said before, the sooner you can test, the better.

We are in an excellent time of technologically, where technical limitations do not require more than any training you need to give the player so that he understands the level is done through a text box. Now, everything can be done in a more subtle way and various situations using creativity that has a good learning curve. Gradually introducing elements of fun and not letting the player get bored is a great way to start your game. Your audience is extremely intelligent and is in search of a challenge and not to be guided so aggressively that you take away the difficulty they seek.

Because of that, the enemies are part of the level design. Making the player understand progressively and not putting everything all at once helps them to understand that a challenge will be fun and not frustrating. Moreover, great vistas and graphics are important, but it doesn’t always need to be realistic. When you find something new and unexpected, the public is more likely to remain committed to your title.

Therefore, practice often your level design. I advise to use pen and paper before going for your engine, since that gives you a better dimension of what needs to be fixed at the beginning. And do not worry about criticism. After all, evolution comes through practice!

Many new artists ask themselves which way is the best way to create an image that has colors working in harmony. The easiest way is is creating a color palette.

Since the beginning of art, the palette has been used to identify which colors shall be used on your work. What color mix should be done so that the result is harmonic, and doesn’t have visual chaos.

In digital art, it is not much different. But what is the right way to create an color palette in this sense?

In the creative world, there is no such thing as the “right way”. The right way is the way that you identify yourself. But here are 3 little tips that may help you:

Make the color palette before you start painting or after painting the main object. Having in mind which colors should be used, you avoid getting out of the palette and ruin you work! A lot of times, you paint first the main object or character, in a free way, and then, trough it’s colors, you create the palette that will be used for the rest of the work.

Take it easy with the tones! The palette is to help limit the colors you will use. If you add too many colors, it’s the same of not using a palette at all! Have in mind that the tones should be similar to a harmonic drawing.

Make cross palettes. Most of the digital artists creates the palette in this model:

This isn’t wrong. Here, we see cleary 5 different tones of blue, green and yellow, which will serve well for the painting. But it’s a lot easier to make your work in harmony if you follow the cross palette model:

Cross palette is where a tone of each color is the same tone of another. In the example above, we can see that the green and blue color share the same tone.

Keep these tips in mind! Color palettes are very important, that is what will dictate the pace of your work.

At Give Me Five, we strive to come up with a better subject than the last to introduce you to in every Give Me Lessons. Oftentimes, we opted for continuity of something that we previously published, but this time an exception was made for the issue of where the Brazilian industry is at, and how those of you still considering going in, can have a better understanding of the situation.

What is the development industry like at the moment?

A while ago, during several talks, we heard something to the following effect: “If you expect to get into the industry and start developing the successor of a great franchise, give up.” And frankly, this is still the situation. But to tell you the truth, this is worldwide. Big games require people with experience to handle the project scope. So it is good to discard that option.

But do not worry, future independent developer! Things are much better than what your first impression of this could be! You can take a risk by creating something different and it will certainly give you experience. This is the current scenario of the Brazilian industry. The vast majority of developers are doing things with their own resources, although we are seeing some studios also have the opportunity – and are accepting – to do partnerships. In the future, we can see those who decide to work on large projects, as well as those who decide to remain independent. Which, by the way, is not to say that those who are not independent have no ambitions. With fewer people, the profit between each of them is larger and, as I said earlier, there is more room for innovation. Both paths are excellent.

Wait… what is an independent developer?

This is a definition that many face. There are companies that publish games on their own, especially in the age of digital distribution, but are large enough to create high-scope projects. Asking what an independent developer is raises more questions than answers. Even Ron Gilbert addressed this. Remember that “independent” is the same as “indie”. It is in this area that you, aspiring developer, would go in. And now, we enter the main question on this Give Me Lesson. Drums, please.

How is the life of a developer?

Difficult, exhausting and full of emotions; Fun, rewarding and joyful. Whether you consider yourself independent or not, what changes is the working method and how each project should be handled. Ideas are worthless without execution. It is also a life where you cannot sit still and wait for things to happen. Obstacles will appear and you will have to find a way to circumvent them. Even with the creation of the text they appeared! “Proactive” is a term that will be essential in your personality. And leave the comfort zone too. Your game will not only be yours. It’s like raising a child and sending them to school.

Get ready, and make your way into the industry as soon as possible. Attend events. Talk to developers. Like everything in life, being a developer depends on your own decision.

This month’s Give Me Lessons will be about a subject that is essential for those who don’t have free years and lot of professionals for development.

Engines.

What is a game engine?

There is no better term to define a game engine than using it’s own name. Mechanic for games. Let’s say you make a platformer, where the character can walk, jump, collect items, and have to escape enemies. The game works perfectly, it has been launched, and it is a hit. Soon enough you’ll want to make another game with some differences, while still being a platformer. He walks, jumps, collects items, and escapes. Instead of doing the programming all over again, you create an engine that will help you create this game, and other games to come in the future! There are several types of engines for different types of games. In general, engines help with the physics, sound, and so forth.

To sum it up: A game engine is an application that helps you create the game while being organized, while keeping things simple, and being able to reuse code.

Should I create my own engine?

It goes without saying that if you create an engine for your own needs, it will work better than something made for somebody else’s. But creating an engine takes a lot of development time, which could have been used developing the game itself with an existing engine.

What is the best engine?

There is no such thing. There are hundreds of engines, and each are good for different purposes. The question that should be asked is:

How do I choose the right engine for my project?

Before thinking on the engine, you must have a lot of the project planned. Ask yourself this questions:

What platform(s) will my game be available on?

Is my game going to be in 2D or 3D?

What is the genre (platformer, racing, RPG, etc)?

What programming language does my team have the most knowledge with?

With these questions in mind, you can pick an engine you feel more comfortable with, and will satisfy your needs.

What’s next?

Once you’ve selected or created your engine, it’s time to start working on your project!! Read the documentation and spread it to your team. Another good idea is to go after some frameworks. Frameworks are libraries already made that will help you when you’re programming.

Has been claiming developers fast! It’s famous for having several programming languages, options to export for several platforms and having a huge Asset Store (a place where you can find extra content to use).

Feedback in games is not only the return that you have by the players, it’s also a way to respond their commands during the gameplay. It is even possible to say that it is the most important aspect of the development process. It is essential that it is well planed and that the reaction be the best possible.

We will start with the most common definition about feedback: response of the players. This includes the first testers, to the final ones. Their response must always be a reference to the development of your project. If it is during development, it is the best time to refine something that was poorly planned, or even surprise yourself with something new that wasn’t planned and works better than what you originally had. Or even after the release, in which case the feedback may be used in potential patches (updates with bug fixes), DLCs (downloadable content), or for your future titles.

But the feedback is also a game mechanic, like I said in the first paragraph. Each command the player executes must receive a response from the game in a positive way. That’s why the statement about testers was made previously. However, this is different from genre to genre. Puzzle games need to offer satisfaction upon solving each one, while MMOs may have much more complexity by balancing it all.

In both cases, self-criticism of the developer is essential. Never believe that your product is perfect and has no room for improvement. Always listen to the community playing your game(s). This doesn’t mean you have to implement or remove everything they say, but you should at least take it into consideration and think about it. What they’re doing is reacting, and giving feedback; something everyone needs in the course of development.

This is one reason why mods are so popular. You’re giving the community an opportunity to participate in your project, and put their ideas into practice based off of the base game. Pleasing the community should always be a high priority as a developer. Kickstarter is successful in this way.

Similarly, the current criticism towards the ending of Mass Effect 3 is a good example. For the first time, people were able to show feedback via donation to Children’s Play. However, some responses could be more aggressive than others. You just need to understand how to handle things things properly.

It is common both in the entertainment industry as well as in software’s projects that have documents that facilitate the organization during the days, months and/or years of production. And as the game is exactly in the middle of these two, there are documents that are used during the production of a title too. Among these are the “Game Design Document” (GDD), the “Technical Design Document” (TDD) and “Art Style Guide” (ASG). The last two are less common, but still used.

While TDD gathers information specific to the programming team and ASG shows the style of art that your game will follow, they are attached to the GDD, which will contain all the information from your game, including cut ideas and other material that can be used in a sequence or expansions/post-launch content and any important detail to guide developers.

In this Give Me Lessons, let’s show those interested in the area of design the important issues of a GDD. Click below to check it out!

What is a GDD? It is necessary?

A GDD is, as the name says, a design document for your game. When working on a project for a long period of time, it can really wear on you and your team. When this happens, it’s uncommon to have a clear mind, and you will most likely lose your train of thought. You can potentially forget things that you once had planned. So although a GDD is not necessary, it is recommended for this purpose. It will also help keep everyone on the same page.

There is a perfect model/template of a GDD? Is it the Give Me Five’s one?

There is no such thing as a “perfect” model/template, because it is subjective. The one we use is perfect for us, but it might not be for you. The best you can use is the one that is more clear to you and your team. It would best convey the ideas and organizes everything in a way that, when needed, will be easy to find. Still, you can find many books or websites and rely on them, or even use them in an unchanged way. In the future, take the time to improve what did not work.

I want to make my GDD now! What do I need to include?

Honestly? Every important detail. But since you’re reading this far (thanks for that!), We can suggest a few things. The first is to put a section called “Unique Selling Proposition” (USP). This is a term originated in the area of advertising, where several points that differentiate your product from any other on the market. What makes your game unique? What makes you believe that is creative and can work? Highlight these things, and explain why.

You can also put a section with whatever name that feels nice, but it has a kind of synopsis of the game. Imagine yourself in a situation where you’re in an elevator that goes up in 30 seconds and you will present your project to investors. During this exact time, you should be able to describe the title in a honest and creative way, while covering the points in order to capture attention. Describe it in a excited manner, also because your team members will read it and they also need to believe it will work.

If you want to submit this document to people outside of the project, a glossary can also be important. After all, not everyone knows the terms we use in the gaming industry. To maintain control, it is important to also include detail of any changes made in your GDD over time as to what was added, removed, moved or corrected.

Having a GDD means that I need to follow it without changes?

Yes and no. As I said, it is a way to organize and guide the team. Naturally, what is detailed there needs to be followed, but it is rare for a game to end the same way it was originally designed. Changes must and will occur during the middle of the project. Ideas can be cut or added to, but with the reminder that they should not harm the project’s progress. There will come a time where they can only be kept or cut.

For the same reason, it is interesting to have a schedule, whether inside or outside the GDD. Do not think you can simply add features and then find a way to fit them. Time will be tight. Besides, remember the USP? Anyone can release a game with those exact features that were once what made your project unique.

Use the GDD in your favor and not as a limitation. It is a document that can and will help you!

Have you ever dreamed of making a game with 2D art for mobile? With glory and success through the path without the third dimension? Well, then check out the third Give Me Lessons! In the video below, our Art Director, Felipe Vieira talks about using Sprite-Sheet for optimization and performance gain, as well as other tips. You can also see the two previous episodeshere and here.

Hello! I’m Roberto Guedes, co-founder of Give Me Five and I am here to present our second episode in the series “Give Me Lessons“. We received several tips of what we could talk about on the decision of making this! Can you guess which? Without further ado, here we go!

We all know how easy it is to create your own idea. The problem is that most of them need working on, or incredibly difficult to put into practice. When we talk about games, we also include several factors, with many days of brainstorming and planning. Honestly, even this text was not easy! Then, after the first step … How to proceed?

It is essential that you have your own methods to stimulate your creativity. Fight for your newest project, since it will not write itself. But an idea can arise at any moment, especially when least expected. Remember to write them down as soon as possible, even the ones you’re doubting. Maybe you can improve them later on?

But what if nothing appears? Relax, don’t panic in your diary on social media websites! There are ways to stimulate your creativity. One technique that you can try is to make your first activity of the day writing non-stop for a predetermined time. It can be on the computer or on paper, whichever is more comfortable.

If nothing shows up, repeat the last word. You can talk about anything, nobody will ever read! In a way, your brain gets stimulated and something will come up. This method was used in our last project (including the decision for the title!) and several major international games. After this, there’s no secret. Persistence is the key. Use whatever method you created your idea with, and continue practicing it until you become better at it. And don’t worry, trial and error are important steps!

In short, your idea is developed with insistence and missteps along the way. Do not be ashamed to ask for feedback. You will find that the best opinions come from other people! Also, we are waiting for your feedback on this lesson. Until next time!

While we have nothing to announce in terms of new games yet, we have prepared a new series focused on aspiring, hobbyists and professional developers. The “Give Me Lessons” series will bring every 30th of each month (with the exception of February, it will be released on the 28th or 29th) tips on techniques in different areas of production of titles, including videos, texts and images. We also invite you to give us feedback and suggestions for future posts.

Starting today, our Art Director, Felipe Vieira, talks about how to define the colors to use in your next game. You can see it onYouTube or Vimeo.

This is just the first of several new targets that will be announced over the next year. Thanks for your support!